The Romance of a Young Painter

Steve stood at the window of the study, from which he could see the young lovers taking a walk in the courtyard.

"I owe you a great favor." He said to the young man standing beside him.

"Hua people always repay their kindness, not to mention that you were almost a life-saving kindness to me back then," Yuan Xun leaned on the edge of the window sill, looking lazy, he said, "It seems that you have confirmed his favor. identity."

"A DNA test doesn't take a lot of time," Steve said. "The trouble is how to explain it to him. After all, I haven't known his existence for more than 20 years. I really can't be regarded as a qualified father."

"Are you timid to be close to the hometown, in fact, you can rest assured," Yuan Xun said, "He seems to be well taken care of, and getting to know you is probably just the icing on the cake in his life."

Steve said: "I feel a little regretful when you say that. Maybe I should think about how to make up for the debt of more than 20 years."

Yuan Xun said: "For example, the entire Cahill family's property?"

"It's not bad, if he has the corresponding ability," Steve saw Shen Guangji say something to Zhou Nianjiu, who showed a thoughtful expression, then stretched out his fingers to outline the sky, he shook his head Dao, "However, most of his energy is devoted to artistic creation, and it may be difficult for him to adapt to this kind of life."

Yuan Xun smiled disapprovingly, his eyes fell more on the other person.

Steve noticed this, and he said, "I noticed that you've been watching Shen, or is it actually him who you're looking at?"

"This is probably the funniest joke I've ever heard." Yuan Xun shrugged.

"Are you sure you didn't mean what you said just now?" Steve deliberately teased him, and said, "Speaking of which, the conversation with Shen last night made me feel refreshed. He is a born diplomat. If it weren't for you and me for many years I’m afraid I’m about to be persuaded by him. Dear Joyce, it’s understandable to appreciate such an excellent person, even if he’s your opponent from a standpoint.”

"Rather than admiration, it's more disgusting." Yuan Xun said unabashedly, he knew that clumsy concealment was meaningless in front of Steve.

"Oh?" Steve looked at his young friend, beckoning him to continue with encouraging eyes.

Yuan Xun said: "If the thing you have worked so hard to build is toppled like a domino, it is estimated that it will be difficult for you to have a good impression of this destroyer, especially this person is still a joker."

"Is he the reason why you couldn't take a vacation for three years?" Steve smiled knowingly, "For a person like you who is sabotaging your work, he probably did you the cruelest thing in the world." Oh, poor Shen, I'm afraid he will never guess the real reason why he is hated by you."

"It's as if you admire him so much," Yuan Xun rolled his eyes at him, and said, "Dear Mr. Steve Dedalus Cahill, let me remind you, if you don't take action again, your son will be very serious." To be abducted by this Mr. Diplomat."

Steve turned his attention back to the two people in the garden, and said, "There won't be such a day."

In the evening, Steve invited Shen Guangji to go out for a horse ride. He said, "Dear Shen, I think we can continue talking about yesterday's topic. Please don't worry about your friend. Liz will take good care of him."

Liz, the housekeeper who was standing by, bowed to Zhou Nianjiu, and suggested politely: "Mr. Zhou, our husband's greenhouse has a nice view. I think you might prefer to enjoy a quiet evening there rather than bumping around on the horse. .”

Zhou Nianjiu had learned from Shen Guangji last night that he had other purposes for this trip, and knowing that he couldn't help with those things, he agreed to the other party's suggestion.

Butler Liz led Zhou Nianjiu all the way to the top floor of the villa. It was more like a hanging garden than a flower house. The frame was built of white marble and marble of the same color. Use "very good" to describe.

Liz, the butler at the side, said respectfully: "Mr. Zhou has explained that Mr. Zhou is free to move about. If there is something he likes, he can take it at will."

Zhou Nianjiu thanked the host for his kindness. Looking around, the entire garden was covered by a glass dome with high transparency, which provided a natural barrier for the flowers and trees inside. Looking around, roses, hydrangea, hosta, hollyhock and carnation were in full bloom, forming a A natural path of flowers, he couldn't help but follow this path all the way, until he reached the center of the garden alone, where there was a crystal tree as tall as a person, whose body reflected colorful rays of light in the sun.

Zhou Nianjiu recognized it as a pomegranate at a glance. The flowers and leaves were made of precious red and green gemstones, and there were even a few crystal-clear fruits. There are two glass bottles with the year marked on the bottle and a note in each bottle.

Pandora's box.

Zhou Nianjiu shook his head and threw these words out of his mind. If he hadn't found the glass bottles left by Joyce in Zhou's old house, he might not have been able to see what this tree represented, but now the truth is out. It was obvious, but he couldn't feel the slightest surprise. After the initial curiosity, who his biological father was was just a dispensable truth to him.

"Isn't it beautiful, this pomegranate tree?" Yuan Xun's voice sounded from behind.

Looking back, Zhou Nianjiu already knew that this person was the enemy of the Fang family. Although he didn't look like a bad person, many times a person's good or bad couldn't just be seen on the surface.

Yuan Xun didn't mind the other party's silence, he touched the crystal fruit on the branch, and said, "It's better to meet by chance, let's have a cup of tea together, Steve always has the best Darjeeling at this time of year."

In the woods near the villa, beautiful thoroughbred horses led the knights to the depths of the dense forest. Steve sent his entourage to follow him from a distance, and then said: "In the first century BC, the two heirs of the Ptolemaic dynasty Cleopatra and her younger brother Ptolemy XIII each tried their best to obtain the right of inheritance, and the goddess of luck was obviously on the side of Cleopatra. She made an irreparable mistake, but she boarded the big ship of Caesar. The end of the matter was that Ptolemy XIII was quickly pulled off the throne by the Romans who were both enemies and friends, and the queen exclusively enjoyed The rulership of Telemy, and became the de facto First Lady of the Roman Empire."

After all, the other party wasted so much time not to tell a nonsensical story, Shen Guangji calmly waited for the other party to reveal the real intention of the trip.

"After Caesar was assassinated, Cleopatra formed an alliance with Roman commander Antony, or they became a couple. Their love story is still being mentioned." Steve looked to the southeast direction, As if looking at the ancient country where these stories happened across time and space, he asked, "Do you like this story?"

Shen Guangji looked in the same direction and said: "As far as I know, Cleopatra was an outright opportunist. Everything she did was to save the waning Ptolemaic dynasty. So whether it is Caesar or Antony, They are all just pawns for her to achieve her goals, so she can send herself to Caesar's bed, and she can quickly have a deep affection with Anthony after Caesar's death. However, there is a bit of truth here. After Anthony's strength was damaged, The lady statesman soon deserted her lover in Actium to embrace Octavian."

Steve said, "So you don't like it."

Shen Guangji said: "You can't say that. Although her actions are not glorious, I appreciate her courage. If you want to wear the crown, you must bear the weight. What she did was to lead a weak The Empire fought hard, and for a time she rose to heights that would otherwise have been impossible."

"Do you have to bear the weight if you want to wear the crown? It seems that you already understand the rules of the game," Steve retracted his gaze, and said, "Then, I should admire your courage for daring to bring Cahill into the game." You should still laugh at your stupidity."

"I have never positioned myself as a chess player, and you are not a pawn to be manipulated by others." Shen Guangji could hear the other party's tone of badness, and he said, "My purpose here is to ask you to give a piece of information that has almost no conflict of interest with you." If I have offended you, I sincerely apologize."

Steve said, "Then how do you explain the companion you chose?"

Shen Guangji quickly understood what Steve was referring to, and he said, "No, that's not my intention. If possible, I hope he doesn't meet you under such circumstances."

Steve stared at him coldly: "Why don't you say that you want to bet on the tiebreaker?"

Shen Guangji smiled wryly and said: "It seems that you have a deep misunderstanding of me. Believe it or not, I didn't mean to let him get involved in it. This time I took him with me only because of a person who can't be separated from his lover." Selfish."

Steve said, "What if my condition is that you separate from him?"

"Impossible," Shen Guangji refused without hesitation, he said, "It's a completely different matter."

"Young man, don't answer me so quickly, try to wait a little longer, maybe you will change your mind." Steve turned his horse's head and said, "Come back, dinner should be ready, I heard from Liz that the kitchen has arranged a barbecue and dinner." Pudding, I hope it suits your taste."

Shen Guangji was half a horse behind and followed the owner of the land. Behind them, the sun completely sank into the horizon.